European Court Rules Against German Gambling Monopolies

Last week the European Union’s highest court ruled that Germany’s state-run gambling monopolies are unlawful. At the moment German regulations state that all lotteries and sports betting are offered exclusively by state-controlled monopolies. The German government was dealt a severe blow when the European Court of Justice ruled that the German monopolies were not “consistent and systemic enough” to uphold the argument that restrictions served to protect the public from gambling addiction.

The EU ruling may well lead to new gambling regulations in Germany wiping out state-run gambling monopolies, although the Deutscher Lotto und Totoblock (DLTB) are to set to fight the decision.

“The European court has made it clear that E.U. member states can decide whether they want a commercial model or a state-authorized model governed by the public interest,” said Erwin Horak, chairman of the DLTB.

Although online gambling is officially banned in German it has generated an estimated €1 billion in annual revenue for offshore operators. Analysts suggest the total has been rising at an annual rate of about 30%, which is the main reason for the decline in revenue for the state-run gambling companies.